Defection: On April 11,  Court Will Rule A Lawsuit Seeking Dogara’s Dismissal.

On Wednesday, a Federal High Court in Abuja set April 11 for judgment in a suit seeking to have the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara’s seat declared vacant due to his defection to the All Progressives Congress.

The date was set by Justice Donatus Okorowo, who said the judgment, which had been scheduled for Wednesday, was not yet ready.

Dogara’s defection to the APC prompted the Peoples Democratic Party to petition the court to have him removed as the member representing the Bogoro/Dass/Tafawa Balewa Federal Constituency in Bauchi State.

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The plaintiffs in the suit are the PDP and its state chairman, Hamza Akuyam, while the defendants are Dogara, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Independent National Electoral Commission, and the APC.

When he submitted a resignation letter to the Chairman of the Bogoro ‘C’ Ward in the state on July 24, 2020, Dogara defected from the PDP to the APC.

By virtue of Section 68(1)(g) of the Constitution, the plaintiffs claimed that by defecting from the party that sponsored him to the 9th National Assembly before the end of his term, Dogara should vacate the seat because he was no longer qualified to participate in the lower house’s activities.